Shloka 1

Adhyāya 174: Karma as an inescapable companion (कर्मानुगमन-उपदेश)

Devanagari script

अफ-्--रा+ >> त्रिसप्तत्याधेकशततमो<ध्याय: राजधर्मा और गौतमका पुन: जीवित होना भीष्म उवाच ततश्नितां बकपते: कारयामास राक्षस: | रत्नैर्गन्धैश्व बहुभिवस्त्रैश्ष समलंकृताम्‌

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | tataś citāṃ bakapateḥ kārayāmāsa rākṣasaḥ | ratnair gandhaiś ca bahubhir vastraiś ca samalaṅkṛtām |

Translation

Bhishma said: “O King, thereafter the rākṣasa Virūpākṣa had a funeral pyre prepared for Baka, the lord of cranes. That pyre was richly adorned with many jewels, fragrant substances (such as sandalwood and perfumes), and fine garments.”

Word by Word

• {'tataḥ': 'thereafter

• then', 'citām': 'funeral pyre', 'bakapateḥ': 'of Baka-pati

• ‘lord of Baka’ (here, Baka associated with a crane/‘baka’)', 'kārayāmāsa': 'caused to be made

• had (it) prepared', 'rākṣasaḥ': 'the rākṣasa (demon/ogre-like being)', 'ratnaiḥ': 'with jewels', 'gandhaiḥ': 'with fragrances

• aromatic substances', 'bahubhiḥ': 'many

• numerous', 'vastraiḥ': 'with garments

• cloths', 'samalaṅkṛtām': 'well-adorned

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Rājā (the king, i.e., Yudhiṣṭhira as listener in Śānti Parva context)
• Virūpākṣa (rākṣasa)
• Baka/Bakapati
• citā (funeral pyre)
• ratna (jewels)
• gandha (fragrant substances)
• vastra (garments)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even amid extraordinary circumstances and non-human actors, the narrative foregrounds the importance of proper rites and honoring the dead—an aspect of rajadharma where order, dignity, and ritual correctness uphold social and moral stability.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma narrates that Virūpākṣa, a rākṣasa, arranges a funeral pyre for Bakapati (Baka), decorating it lavishly with jewels, fragrances, and garments, setting the scene for the episode connected with rajadharma and the revival of Gautama.